Imam Reza’s Debate with Jathliq
The debate took place in a meeting at the court of Abbasid caliph Ma’mun, and was attended by a number of scholars and prominent figures.
At the beginning, Jathliq asked Ma’mun: “How can I take part in the debate while I do not recognize your Holy Book and Prophet?”
Imam Reza (AS) answered the question, saying he would make references to the Bible rather than the Quran. And that is what he did. On many issues, Imam Reza (AS) brought evidence from the Bible to prove his point.
In this debate, topics such as the prophethood of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the human nature of Jesus (AS) were discussed. There was also mention of the number of apostles of Jesus and the loss of the original version of the Bible.
To prove the prophethood of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Imam Reza (AS) quoted from the Old and New Testaments, including a sentence mentioned in the Bible from Jesus (AS) who said, “I will go to your God and to my God, and paraclete will come.”
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Imam Reza (AS) also offered two arguments to reject the Christian belief that Jesus (AS) was god. First, he argued that if Jesus (AS) was god, he should not have prayed and fasted. The second was in response to the remark by Jathliq who said Jesus (AS) is god because he raised the dead. Imam Reza (AS) rejected this idea saying that other prophets have done the same and so they should also be considered as god but Christians do not consider them to be god.
At the end of the debate, Jathliq acknowledged that he could not answer Imam Reza’s (AS) arguments and recognized the truthfulness of Islam and prophethood of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
This was an example of a logical and scholarly debate between different faiths. In this debate, Imam Reza (AS) offered strong and logical arguments to answer the questions and doubts raised by Jathliq, which led many Christians to embrace Islam.
